T.I. is fighting for his community, going head-to-head with Lloyd's Of London and demanding they do something to amend their past ties to the trans-Atlantic slave trade.
In July, the rapper, real name Clifford Harris, wrote a letter to the insurance market asking for reparations for slave descendants, publicizing the letter and waiting almost a full month to hear anything back.
As part of their response, Lloyd's Of London owned up to being involved in the slave trade, saying:
"John Neal has asked us to respond on his behalf. Businesses in the Lloyd’s market have operated for over 330 years, and there is much to be proud of in our long collective history. However, there are aspects of the market’s past about which we cannot feel pride and this includes the fact that insurers in the Lloyd’s market insured vessels that were involved in the eighteenth and nineteenth century slave trade. As representatives of today’s Lloyd’s market, we are deeply sorry for this.
We cannot unfortunately undo the past, but we would like to play an active role in trying to level the playing field for Black and Minority Ethnic people in today’s world. On 10 June we announced an initial action plan that focuses on education, research and significant funding for charities and other organisations that promote opportunity and inclusion for Black and Minority Ethnic colleagues. There is much more to do and we will work with our Cultural Advisory Group to determine our longer term plans."
Despite being happy to finally get a response from Lloyd's, Tip is not pleased with the extent of their actions to repair things. He penned a second open letter, once again sharing it on Instagram.
"Although we appreciate you reaching out and again stating Lloyd’s is deeply sorry for its role in the trans-Atlantic slave trade, we find Lloyd’s actions to rectify the situation to be admirable but insufficient," wrote Harris to start his four-page letter.
"The concept of ‘leveling the playing field’ that you refer to in your letter is a concept that does not sufficiently address the 400-plus years of oppression, marginalization and inequality. It does not address in an expedient way how Lloyd’s intends to dedicate a considerable percentage of your $56 billion empire (that Lloyd’s built off of the backs of our ancestors) to fight the lingering effects of the ‘shameful role’ your company played in the trans-Atlantic slave trade. From systemic oppression and injustice, to sub-standard living conditions and education for our children, to the malicious cycle of mass incarceration and the continuous genocide of our people at the hands of the descendants of colonizers, who fight to perpetuate this atrocity in the name of ‘law enforcement,’ we have suffered long enough."
Props to Tip for continuing to fight.